(a) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to wind-operated power sources.
(b) Description of Prior Art
With the increased interest in alternative sources of energy, which has been occasioned by depleting oil resources and enhanced oil prices, attention has been directed to wind and solar energy.
Solar energy has limited applications in temperate climate zones, whereas wind is universal.
The use of wind as a source of energy has had two main drawbacks: the difficulty in controlling the response of the wind-operated machine, and the large size of the machine required.
The speed and velocity of the wind are, of course, uncontrollable, and in the absence of a governing mechanism there is no machine which can withstand the stress of the more violent winds. Even the governing mechanisms of present wind-operated machines are incapable of successfully withstanding windforces greater than 40 knots.
There are two principal types of wind-machine: the traditional windmill having a vane structure which rotates about a horizontal axis, and the more recently developed helical vane which rotates about a vertical axis.
With the traditional windmill the vane area required to generate power is very large, as a consequence the supporting structure and construction expense of non-power generating facilities is relatively large. For example, to provide a vane area of nine square meters, an 80 foot tower is required.
Wind machines employing vanes with a helical structure are, due to the nature of the structure, difficult to govern, and in the absence of some form of governing mechanism will, under high winds, self-destruct.
Both of these prior wind-machines have, in common, one feature which reduces their efficiency, namely in both structures power generated has to be translated at least through 90 degrees, from a vertical to a horizontal axis with a consequent loss of efficiency.